Soul of the Sword
by Ascella Star
Summary: A small story for the Lantis x Hikaru week. All he knew was that an assorted mix of feelings and emotions were appearing as quickly as they changed, making him struggle to even try to discern between one and the next. Then again, he was at least sure of one simple but important fact: That cute redhead was his soul mate… and it seemed that she was completely unaware of it.
1. Trip

**Trip.**

To be completely honest, Hikaru was not entirely sure who came with the fabulous idea that they needed to participate in the Martial Arts with Weapons demonstration that a Dojo back in Nagano was organizing.

It was not an official event, so they were not obliged to assist unless they really wanted to, and in Hikaru's opinion, this was more like the Gekiken of old than a real demonstration. However, it was decided that the Shidou Dojo was going to participate in the demonstration and that Hikaru and Satoru were to be the ones representing their Kendo and Kenjutsu schools respectively.

As so, they decided to make the trip to Nagano by bus and depending on how they felt after the event, they may take the Shikansen back home. They also decided to make the trip there a day earlier so they could be able to sight see a bit before they needed to prepare for the event.

And that's how Hikaru was currently staring distractedly through the window of a bus, counting the hours before they arrive to their destination and quietly singing her incomplete half of a melody that was supposed to be her soul mark.

While singing it, she smiled briefly while remembering everything that happened after her fourteenth birthday, when her melody first manifested itself. She could remember it as if it was just yesterday how she refused to leave the dojo for any amount of time except if it was strictly necessary because she was utterly convinced that her soul mate would be arriving any moment and without notice to the dojo, humming the other half of the song and if she was not there, he would be so disappointed that he would leave forever.

Her smile widened a bit because of the silliness of that thought. She now knew that that little girl's dream was not only completely unreal but also really dumb, because even I she knew that her soul mate was somewhere in the world, she now understood that she could not put her life on hold waiting for a metaphorical knight in shining armour to magically come to her "rescue"

She knew that perhaps someday she would find him… but even if she did not, it was not something that worried her that much.

* * *

The invitation to the Martial Arts with Weapons demonstration arrived several day ago and he was still not sure what he should do with it.

He discussed it briefly with his wife the night it arrived and after a moment of consideration, she told him that she thought it would be a good opportunity to expose their Naginata School and to reassert the presence of their Kenjutsu School.

He thanked her for her input but decided to meditate some more on it. Two days later, he decided that his wife's assessments were in fact correct.

Zagato had not practiced any kind of martial art for several years now, leaving the practical part of the Kenjutsu School to his younger brother Lantis and the reins of the Naginata School to his wife Emeraude; right now his only involvement on the dojo was its administration and further promotion.

He made a quick call to his brother, telling him about their imminent participation on the martial arts demonstration. A few more minutes and the details of their trip were completely sorted out.

Zagato then decided that, no matter what happened next, something good was sure to come from this trip.

* * *

 _Hello!_

 _this is a small story written for the Hikaru and Lantis Week. if you read Tea, Please you'll know what all that is about._

 _This is supposed to be part of the Parallel worlds series, but i decided to post it separatedly so you could enjoy it better._

 **Useful information:**

\- Kendo and Kenjutsu are forms of martial arts involving a sword. However, Kenjutsu was the original form used by samurais and was used mostly for war. Kendo on the other hand is more sport oriented and has its roots on Kenjutsu.

\- Naginata is both a form of martial art and the weapon used to practice it. It is based on another ancient form called Naginatajutsu and it was used mostly as a form of defence taught to the daughters of samurais.

 **Notes:**

If by chance you are a Japanese practitioner of this arts and think that my info is not exactly accurate, I would really appreciate if you tell me, so I can learns and correct my stats.


	2. Conflict

**Conflict.**

Just as any event that offers any kind of spectacle, and that is also open to the general public, the Martial Arts with Weapons Demonstration that one of Nagano's Dojos organized, gathered a considerable amount of people, both local and from other places, that was eager to watch the development of the event.

The general sentiment on town was rather cheerful; local population decided to take a little advantage of the current event and was offering all sort of things that ranged from a man selling posters of the champions of one or another discipline to the old lady selling plushies dressed with samurai traditional robes and that were sporting what looked suspiciously like little Katanas, Naginatas, Wakisashis and Tantos that not only were really curious but also were absolutely cute.

Little by little you could also see how the bus station was slowly bringing both tourists and participants for the event, some already with a destination in mind, and some that arrived to Nagano with nothing but what they had on their backs, and that were usually approached by people offering their decreasing hotels services.

Among those that had a previously planned destination, were a small redhead and a brown haired young man several inches taller than the girl. Both of them were carrying really big luggage that was clearly not of the average kind, because If you looked closely, you could see the outline of a pair of Spades in there.

With a confident stride, they both started their way towards an Inn that was half way between the station and the Gymnasium where the demonstration was to be held, and once there, they proceeded to go to the counter where they were to show their reservation number and get their assigned rooms.

When they got there however, they noticed how a long black haired man was discussing rather agitatedly with one of the two people behind the counter. It stroke Satoru as Odd, but let it slip in favour of getting the other's person attention so he could get their rooms as soon as possible. They were really looking forward to taking a look around town.

Then again, that was the moment he understood why the other man was visibly upset.

It seemed that someone messed up the reservation plans when they were made, creating a conflict between the requests of both the black haired man's family and the one from the Shidou siblings. Both of them requested the same kind of rooms, both of them asked for two and it seemed that their solicitudes were made with only a couple of minutes in between.

The Hotel was now at full capacity, they were unable to redirect any of them to another place as everything was sold out and in the meanwhile, both families were still waiting for a solution to be given.

Sighing in annoyance, Satoru thought that perhaps he could get a compromise between both parties, but before approaching the other man with his idea, he decided to run it with Hikaru first.

Hikaru listened with rapt attention the details of their current predicament, and after giving the Hotel staff an annoyed look, she told her brother that she did not mind to share a room with him, and that the other family could have the other room.

Satoru approached the other man, who presented himself as Soll Zagato, telling him how he was willing to share a room with his sister so they could pick the other one. After a brief exchange between them and the person at the counter, they were able to pick a key each and go on their way already.

Something made Hikaru turn around and see the long haired man again, mostly out of curiosity on him but also too see where he was going. The last thing she was able to see of him was how he got beside a blond woman and another younger man, with short black hair that was clearly related to him.

She was not sure why that other man stole her attention so completely with only a glance in his direction.

And if her incomplete soul-mate melody kept playing on loop inside her head for the rest of the day… well that was nobody's business anyway.


	3. Reunion

**Reunion**

The day of the event finally arrived. The participant's registration began at 7 am, concluding around 8:30, and at 9 am, when the access to the general public began, the Gymnasium was at full capacity with the representatives of several dojos from all along the country that were rather eager to participate.

It seemed that more than one thought that a little bit more of publicity would not harm anyone.

Their schedule was already set, beginning with the demonstration of the Tate-do schools just after the inauguration speech and then they would alternate between schools from the Koryu Budo and the Gendai Budo until every registered discipline had been shown.

Participants however were expected to appear twice at least. First everybody was asked to appear in a group demonstration of their discipline in a group Kata and then as individuals, showing a special move that was distinctive of their schools.

For this, each disciplinary group was given about half an hour before the inauguration speech so they could acquaintance themselves and maybe interact with the other groups and also so they could figure out which kata could they show for their group participation.

Hikaru however, was rather distracted. Her innate curiosity prompted her to search among the other groups of participants for the tall, dark, long haired man that she saw the day before at the hotel, but even though she looked everywhere, she could not find him.

She did find however the other tall guy, the one that was clearly related to the first one, the man that stole her attention in a rather unavoidable way. That man was in the same disciplinary group as her brother Satoru.

For a moment, Hikaru considered if she should go look for her brother with some silly excuse just to see if she could gain some more information about this mystery man; however she quickly got rid of that idea deciding to better concentrate herself in her incoming group presentation.

Besides, even if Satoru was not as overprotective of her as Masaru and Kakeru, she was sure that He would see through her act rather quickly.

Getting back on track, she noted that the other Kendo representatives decided to do a small rehearsal of the kata they selected to perform as a group, before going out to show it. They knew they had enough time for their rehearsal, seeing as the organizers were just getting around the greetings and presentations of the welcome speech and that the first group of Tate-do will not be up for another 45 minutes.

Their rehearsal was done satisfactorily, leaving the kendokas free to wander around the Gymnasium, and allowing Hikaru to do just that before having to get back to the rest of her group.

She was walking around in a distracted way, looking at everything and anything at the same time. She saw other groups' practices, people arriving late or even old friends reuniting after not being able to see each other since last competitions.

Sometime along the way, Hikaru started to hum her half melody while watching other people's practices. She still wasn't sure why, but her melody had been playing on loop on her head since the day before, not even allowing her to sleep without thinking of it. And it seemed that it would keep on playing for an indefinite amount of time.

Or so she thought, because both her humming and her distracted steps were abruptly interrupted by a tall barrier that Hikaru could have sworn was not there a couple of minutes ago.

And maybe she was right, because said "barrier" was just getting around the same corner Hikaru was about to take.

Hikaru's first reaction was to quickly apologize for not paying attention to where she was going, offering a million or so excuses for why she collided with him, and telling him that it would not happen again.

The problem was the moment her eyes met his, as he was giving her a rather intense look that made her uneasy enough to just offer a final apology before making a hasty retreat, leaving behind a tall, dark haired man whose violet eyes reflected just a small amount of the things he was actually feeling.

Because what Hikaru did not know was that the melody she had been humming moments before their collision, was a perfect match to the one Lantis had been playing on his mind for the entirety of the morning.

* * *

 _I apologize for the delay, I got a horrible two days migraine that left me unable to use the computer (light in general hurt my eyes and worsened the migraine)_

 _But here I'm back. So I hope you enjoy this little chapters_


	4. Family

**Family**

Lantis felt… confused? Maybe. Exited? Perhaps. In fact, He did not know with certainty what was he actually feeling. All he knew was that an assorted mix of feelings and emotions were appearing as quickly as they changed, making him struggle to even try to discern between one and the next.

Then again, he was at least sure of one simple but important fact. The small redhead that collided with him just a moment ago was the owner of the other half of his soul melody.

That cute redhead was his soul mate… and it seemed that she was completely unaware of it.

He tried to reach out to her, but by the time he got out of his brief stupor and turned around to see where she went, she had already disappeared to, as suggested by her choice of clothing, rejoin her disciplinary group

He briefly wondered what discipline was she representing, and how good was her in it. Then, he chided himself for never taking an interest in other disciplines competitions.

But how was he supposed to know that his soul mate also practiced a martial art?

It didn't matter now. The important thing was that he finally found his other half, and he was not disappointed by what he had glimpsed so far…. Except maybe, of the fact that as of now, he was the only one aware of said discovery.

This however gave him an unexpected advantage that he was sure he would not have gained under any other circumstances. Now that he knew who his soul mate was, he would be able to observe her as carefully as he could. He could start to know her from afar and maybe, just maybe time the revelation of him being her soul mate in the best possible setting.

And observe her, he did.

He discovered that one of his peers for the Kenjutsu group was apparently part of her family. This helped and cautioned him in equal measure. Shidou Satoru was a no-nonsense kind of guy that asked nothing of his own serious brother any day. However, at a closer inspection, he could see how his eyes softened a bit every time she approached him to tell him whatever was on her mind at that specific moment.

He saw her participate on the Kendo Group demonstration, just after the Iai-to presentation. He could see how serious she was with her sport of choice and just how passionate she was with every small movement made with her Shinai, even in something as irrelevant as a group Kata.

He also saw her interact with the other participants, always offering them a kind smile and encouragement words that were filed with the best of wishes.

 **"You seem distracted little brother. If you are not careful you may lose your turn for your Kenjutsu first participation"**

Turning around, Lantis offered a small but sincere smile to his older brother Zagato, thanking all the gods above that he always seemed to know when he needed him the most, even without uttering a single word to reach him.

They kept themselves silent, just observing the proceedings of the Aikido demonstration. As usual, their shared silences were comfortable ones, filled with camaraderie and the reliability that none of them could find elsewhere. It was a silence filled with non uttered words and known but never told secrets.

" **If you are planning on approaching her, I would suggest you do it before the event gets to an end. You don't know when you would be able to see her again"**

With this parting words, Zagato left him alone with his thoughts, just as the announcement for the Kenjutsu demonstration was heard over the speakers. Smiling lightly to himself, he headed to where the rest of his peers, including the redhead's relative, were.

 _"Yes, I should definitely approach her soon…"_


	5. Nova

**Nova**

In Hikaru's opinion, there was no one as overprotective of her as her middle brothers Masaru and Kakeru… perhaps with the exception of her 'dear' cousin Nova.

Though, if you really asked her about it, Hikaru would tell you that even though Masaru and Kakeru claimed to have their 'cute little sister' best interests in mind, Nova just wanted to have Hikaru all to herself, without wanting to share her with anyone. Hikaru's family included.

It was for this exact reason that Hikaru was usually thankful of the small blessings the Gods gave her, one of those being the fact that her cousin lived on the other side of the country so her visits were rare at best.

Then again, the gods can't always be on her side… which led us to the present moment, where said cousin was actually participating in this event as the official representative of her Tantojustu school.

Hikaru spotted her first among the other participants, and the moment she did, she decided that it was best to retreat and hide somewhere else, even using a group of passing people as a cover to get away.

She used a lot of hiding places and evasive tactics; she even sought Satoru out with whatever excuse she could think on the spot. By the third time she did this, Satoru gently confronted her with what he though was actually happening. He simply gave her a soft and understanding smile before saying **"Nova is here, right?"**

Hikaru's answer came in the form of a shy, embarrassed smile that told him a lot more than words could had. He offered to stay by her side for the rest of the day if it made her feel better, although not before ushering her to rejoin the Kendo group, since it was about to be called to perform.

Destiny had other plans for her though, as the Aikido and Iai-to performances prevented them to actually meet and stay together, so Hikaru had to deal with the matter on her own.

She decided to hide in plain sight, interacting with the other participants, offering them smiles, words o encouragements and even the beginnings of friendship if the case allowed her to; she watched her brother participate in the group demonstration for Kenjutsu and even tried to keep an eye on the intriguing black haired guy.

And when she was unable to keep hiding between the masses, she decided to look for a quiet spot where she could practice in peace some of the movements for the demonstration kata she was to give the next day.

In just a few minutes, Hikaru got completely lost in her practice, letting her body flow with the familiar movements made with the Bokken and wooden wakisashi. She was so lost that she never heard the familiar and decided steps that approached her little by little until it was too late to flee.

 **"Hikaru dear! I have been looking for you all day! Any other person would have thought you were trying to hide from me!"**

Hikaru tried to hide the sudden guilt she felt at her Cousin's words, though she wasn't sure she was entirely successful. Putting down her wooden swords, Hikaru gave her a tentative smile before nervously denying the pink haired girl's statement.

Both of them knew she was lying. None of them said something about it either.

A smile that could only be described as predatory, adorned Nova's face, just before announcing that now that she finally was by Hikaru's side, she would not let her out of her sight. **"Especially since you seem to have gained a secret admirer, Cousin dear. The guy has been watching you for a really long time now!"**

Just as expected, Hikaru had no idea of what her cousin was talking about, and it wasn't until Nova explained to her who she was talking about that Hikaru finally got who this so called Secret admirer was.

None other that the black haired stranger that collided with her earlier that day; the same one that got her attention the day before just after the hotel room's incident. The same man performing in the Kenjutsu group with Satoru.

The guy that gave her a look that she still was trying to understand what it meant.

And, if Hikaru thought she was confused before, she was now beyond dumbfounded.

For a moment, Hikaru wanted to just turn around and look for the guy, just so she could confirm her cousin's words on the matter; just to see if the strange curiosity she felt for the guy was not as on sided as she thought in the beginning; to look for him and maybe exchange greetings and names, and if she was lucky, to even get to be his friend.

Then again, Nova's presence halted Hikaru's silly plans of friendship almost immediately.

And suddenly, Hikaru's only wish for the day was for it to end as soon as possible, so she could go and hide in her hotel room and enjoy the apparent peace and quiet it had to offer.

And maybe then, she could cross paths with the black haired stranger without the constant scrutiny of her 'dear' cousin…

* * *

 _HI!_

 _sorry for the delay, but I honestly don't know where my time went._

 _the story is actually finished, i just need to upload it._


	6. Fire

**FIRE**

The Shidou School of Kenjutsu is one of the few schools that survived both the pass of time and the regulations that came with both the Meiji Restoration and the end of the World War II. And even if the Shidous could not claim to have contributed to the Japanese legacy with the name and fame of a well known samurai, they are proud to have the reputation of being warriors that displayed the valuable traits of loyalty, humility and sobriety

On the other hand, the somewhat new Shidou School of Kendo was the actual result of the regulations made after the war that stated that martial arts were to be practiced as a sport. This however did not mean that the kendo school deviated from its Kenjutsu origins, nor from the basic principles that marked the Kenjutsu School as one worth of respect.

Hikaru and Satoru were raised in the heart of this martial arts school, and as such, grew up with this mindset, learning, repeating and applying this ideology to their day to day life. Everybody in their community knew that, whenever the Shidou last name was involved, it was a sure warranty of trustworthiness and reliability.

This traits, as one may imagine, were also shown in the execution of the Demonstration Kata the siblings were to perform, and if they were honest with themselves, the moment the both of them stepped on the exhibition mat, and after giving the customary bow to the judges, they simply let their surroundings melt away while letting their minds conjure the details and surfaces their Dojo back in Tokyo had to offer.

Hikaru easily imagined the scrolls hanging around the Dojo, each of them marking in Kanji the principles the Shidou School was based on. And, the moment she started her routine, her mind also supplied her with the accompanying words that she usually recite while training.

 _'Satoru: one must take serious judgment before making any decisions.'_

A step to the front, followed by a loud Kiai and Hikaru's mind provided her the next sentence. _'Masaru: one must love his family and peers.'_

A step behind, lifting the hand that held the Katana above her head while sending the hand with the Wakisashi in a defensive position.

 _'Kakeru: one must allow his spirit to soar'_

Now sending both hands into an offensive movement and just with a few steps before finishing her routine, Hikaru's mind supplied her with the last statement. ' _Hikaru: one must always forgive'_

Finally striking the ending pose of the Kata, she allowed her eyes to open and her mind to come back from where it was sent at the beginning of the demonstration. Only to be met with the stunned looks her peers and general public were sending her way

And, once Satoru's demonstration was over too, the general appreciation of the Shidou School for Kendo and Kenjutsu had grown considerably; both of their representatives earning respectful and appraising looks from whoever crossed their paths.

* * *

a small reference for this chapter.

The principles of the Shidou School do not belong to me, they are from an author back on Fanfiction that wrote a really good backstory for the Shidou Family. it is called Lion Heart, and if you have not read it yet, you really shoud. (/s/395867/1/Lion-Heart)


	7. Lightning

**Lightning**

The tournament passed in a blur, and soon the only thing left was the Closing Ceremony. It was then that Lantis realized that this could be his last opportunity to cross words with his soulmate.

A soulmate that he had been watching closely.

And a soulmate he was still unsure on how to approach, or how to introduce himself to.

Her Individual demonstration left him, and the rest of the audience, completely breathless; the passion and precision she displayed while executing her Kata moved something powerful inside him; something he was not sure how to react to.

It was then that he decided that it would be best if he approached her by the end of her demonstration.

Unfortunately for him, Destiny had other plans, and by the time the one announced by the judges as Shidou Hikaru, left the exhibition area, a pink haired girl that could easily pass as her twin attached herself to his redhead and did not let her go until it was the pink haired girl's turn to participate.

Afterwards, his redhead had not left a brown haired man's side for even a minute in what appeared to be an attempt to escape the pink haired girl. At first he thought they might be something else, but then he learnt that the guy was in fact, her older brother.

He tried to approach her several times after that, without any results and before he knew it, the event had already finished. People started to leave the stands, the athletes were gathering their things, and everybody was trying to leave the building.

He needed to talk to her before she disappeared.

Lantis shot a small text to his brother asking him to leave without him, and that he would get back later on his own; he then proceeded to walk towards the exit, looking left and right in hopes of seeing a dash of red hair among the sea of black hair.

Once outside, Lantis was faced with a much unexpected situation; the moment he put a foot outside the Gym, huge lightning crossed the sky as a prelude of the storm that was about to be unleashed.

Definitely not the scenario he imagined, but he optimistically thought, one he could work with; wistfully he thought that maybe, with the excuse of waiting for the rain to pass, he could ask her out to the Café nearby.

He was even willing to ask his future brother-in-law to come too just to ensure a few minutes with the girl.

It was then that he finally spotted her; he tried to reach her, dodging people trying to cover themselves and his fellow athletes that were also looking for transportation. He couldn't believe his luck when he noticed that she was currently alone, with neither her brother nor the other girl in sight. It was a bit strange, but he was grateful for the opportunity none the less.

Just when he was about to reach her, someone in their haste, pushed him forward, making him push Hikaru a bit too. Hikaru… who until that moment had been happily humming her part of their song, blissfully unaware of his presence.

Time seemed to stop at that moment. The red head, startled out of her reverie, turned around looking for the person that pushed her. Her melody stopped when she met the eyes of the person behind her, a pair of beautiful violet eyes that were looking at her with a mix of adoration and incredulity that she had never experienced before.

There were no words between them, neither were there any introductions; the blowing wind and the pouring rain were not affecting them; instead, they were trapped in their own world, lost in a strange trance neither was sure they wanted to stop.

Except that it actually stopped. And in a very abrupt way.

Lantis was just coming out of whatever happened between them, was just opening his mouth to maybe introduce himself to his soulmate, when a loud call coming from somewhere nearby stole his moment.

" **Hurry up Hikaru! Get on the Taxi before you catch a cold!"**

She looked him one last time, giving him an apologetic smile before dashing to the aforementioned Taxi, leaving behind a very confused and mildly exasperated Lantis, who was now realizing he just missed his golden opportunity.

He swore quietly when he also realized that he had no idea how to reach out to his soulmate outside of the tournament.


	8. Pets

**Pets**

The trip back from Nagano was in equal parts troublesome and uneventful. The Shinkansen the Sol Family took, made his way back without any eventuality and it was even a few minutes earlier than expected.

The mood surrounding the small family was however, just a bit… diverse. Lantis was more than a little frustrated with the results of his quest to meet his soulmate; Zagato on the other hand was sporting a small knowing smile that could simply be translated into a mischievous "I told you so!" clearly directed to his younger brother. Emeraude was just half amused, half exasperated with her little family's antics.

Once home, and feeling just a bit sorry for his brother, Zagato decided to be a good and generous older sibling, so he handed Lantis the registry of all Japanese martial Arts Dojos, highlighting the ones that talked about the Shidous, and told him how they owned a familiar dojo near Shibuya, somewhere between Meguro and Minato.

A long way to go, considering that they lived in Chiyoda.

But still, not as long as he originally feared; for a moment, the worry that, since he met her at a national competition, his lovely soulmate could have lived as far as the most remote point of the Hokkaido Island crossed his mind.

With this sudden positive development, the only thing he had to do was look for a train guide and lots of patience while looking for the missing dojo.

For his missing redhead.

* * *

If Hikaru was to be honest with herself, she could easily admit that the days following the Martial Arts demonstration have been really peaceful…

And horribly boring.

Then again, she was not sure if said boredom was more acutely felt in contrast to the previous exiting days or if it was just that the dojo was usually peaceful this time of the year. The fact that her work load at her part time job at the pet hospital had also been really low was not exactly helping matters.

She was not sure what to do with so much free time anymore.

It was not that she disliked to have it, quite contrary in fact; however, having so much free time was allowing her mind to wander to places she was not exactly sure she wanted it to go.

She had been daydreaming about the cute stranger she "met" during the competition, how their gazes found each other and how he gave her a strange look seconds before she got up the taxi with her brother.

To this day, she was still unable to decipher it; it was filled with something that looked like curiosity, fascination, some sort of happiness and another thing she was unable to place, but it was a look that she would not mind in the least to have it sent her way again.

"I wonder if I'll see him again someday. Who knows! Maybe another tournament will be organized soon and I'll be able to meet him properly then!"

Smiling to herself with that last thought and quietly humming her soul melody, she decided this was as good a moment as any to have a walk with Hikari. So picking her leash and a couple of plastic bags, she whistled a bit to gain her dog's attention.

"Come on Hikari! Let's go to the park!"


End file.
